Senior Technical Program Manager

Hitachi, Ltd.; Kearny (NJ); On-site; USD 130,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health benefits

Employee equity stock options

20 days PTO

Job summary

Thea Energy is seeking an experienced Technical Program Manager to lead a large, complex custom product development program in the fusion energy sector. You will drive manufacturing development of core magnet technology, guiding scaling from concept to pilot and commercial ramp.

This is a high-visibility role with a focus on accelerating development velocity and maintaining rigorous execution standards. Ideal candidates have 5+ years managing multidisciplinary engineering programs, strong

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or related technical field.
• 5+ years leading multidisciplinary engineering programs in climate tech, aerospace, nuclear, or related industries.
• Experience in manufacturing ramp and delivering concept and pilot scale milestones.
• Ability to work with physics, mechanical, magnet, and manufacturing teams to solve first-of-a-kind problems.
• Strong understanding of design-to-manufacturing processes and build, test cycles.
• Excellent communication skills to influence across engineering, operations, and leadership.
• Thrives in fast-moving startup environments with high ownership and ambiguity.

Responsibilities

• Lead cross-functional manufacturing and operations programs from concept through pilot production, including process and equipment design, installation, qualification, and ramp.
• Oversee selection, qualification, and management of external custom manufacturing vendors, ensuring adherence to specifications, quality standards, and delivery schedules.
• Guide transition from prototype to large-scale manufacturing, including integration of large equipment and continuous process manufacturing techniques.
• Provide regular program updates to leadership, highlighting progress, technical challenges, and proposed solutions.
• Establish and track manufacturing readiness metrics (equipment readiness, process capability, throughput, yield).
• Proactively identify and manage risks and develop mitigation strategies and contingency plans.

Skills

Program management

Cross-functional leadership

Engineering leadership

Manufacturing ramp

Risk management

Technical communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Engineering

Job description

About Thea Energy:

Thea Energy is leveraging recent breakthroughs in stellarator physics and engineering to create a faster and simpler approach to commercializing fusion energy. The company is reinventing the stellarator using computer-controlled arrays of planar coils thereby replacing the intricate, complex modular magnets required in all other stellarator architectures. Thea Energy is on a mission to create a limitless source of zero emission energy for a sustainable future.

Position Overview:

Thea Energy is seeking an experienced and motivated Technical Program Manager to lead a large, complex custom product development program within the fusion energy industry. This is a highly visible role in the organization leading manufacturing development of core magnet technology. This role will act as a force multiplier by increasing development velocity and raising the bar on execution standards. You will oversee the scaling of magnet production from concept to pilot and commercial scale ramps that will advance fusion technology.

Key Responsibility Areas:

• Lead cross-functional manufacturing and operations programs from concept through pilot production, including process and equipment design, installation, qualification, and ramp.

• Oversee the selection, qualification, and management of external custom manufacturing vendors, ensuring adherence to specifications, quality standards, and delivery schedules.

• Guide the transition from prototype to large-scale manufacturing, including the integration of large equipment and continuous process manufacturing techniques.

• Provide regular, detailed program updates to leadership and stakeholders, highlighting progress, technical challenges, and proposed solutions.

• Establish and track key manufacturing readiness metrics (equipment readiness, process capability, throughput, yield etc.)

• Proactively identify and manage technical, schedule, budget, and quality risks. develop effective mitigation strategies and contingency plans.

Ideal Experience & Skillsets:

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering or a related technical field.

• 5+ years leading complex, multidisciplinary engineering programs ideally involving large scale hardware development in climate tech, aerospace, nuclear, or related industries.

• Demonstrated experience of working in a manufacturing ramp setting and delivering concept and pilot scale manufacturing development milestones.

• Demonstrated ability to work deeply with technical teams (physics, mechanical engineering, magnet engineering, manufacturing engineering) and solve first of a kind problems.

• Strong understanding of design and manufacturing processes and the realities of design, build, test cycles.

• Excellent communication skills and the ability to influence across engineering, operations, and leadership teams.

• Proven ability to distill complex technical programs into clear risks, decisions, and priorities for leadership audiences.

• Comfortable operating in a fast-moving startup environment, with high ownership and ambiguity.

Nice to have:

• Manufacturing roadmap development experience.

Company Benefits:

• Comprehensive health benefits (e.g. medical/dental/vision)

• Employee equity stock options

• 20 days PTO

$130,000 - $180,000 a year

Diversity and Inclusion:

Thea Energy is an equal opportunity employer committed to creating a company of diverse backgrounds. By creating a diverse environment, we will bring new ideas and approaches to solving some of the world’s hardest (and most important) problems. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, family or marital status, age, disability, veteran’s status, or other characteristic protected by applicable laws and regulations.